Forgotten Color
by luvliX3
Summary: It's Tsuna's eighteenth birthday and he celebrates by watching the sunset with his friends and family. But there's a certain Guardian missing.


_Hey, here's another KHR fanfic, yay! ^^_

_To the people that are reading Lost Ring, I apologize. I'm still developing the sequence of events for the story. I'll try to work a little bit more on the story. But don't worry, it's not dropped, nor will it be. ^^_

_Disclaimer: Don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of the listed characters, unfortunately…_

* * *

_**Forgotten Color**_

When children learn the colors of the rainbow, "indigo" is not usually remembered. The order of the spectrum engraved in the children's minds is: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple. One color is skipped, left out, neither truly "blue" or "purple", not knowing its place in the world and hidden by the other more bold colors.

* * *

Sunset. Twilight. Dusk. Sundown. Nightfall. Evening. There are so many names for the enchanting orange wash that envelopes the sky when the sun takes its final steps from the East to the West.

"Tenth?"

Tsuna diverted his attention from the sunset to the silver-haired Gokudera that sat across from him. "What is it?" he asked.

"You just stopped all of a sudden, is everything alright?" Green eyes followed the fidgets and restless twitches that his friend made as his lips formed the words that would give an answer.

"I'm fine. I just thought that the sunset was really beautiful today," Tsuna explained. He looked back at the darkening sky once more through his window. "I kind of want to see the sunset with everybody."

The worry on Gokudera's face was painted over with an enthusiastic smile. "If that's what the Tenth wants, then we'll all go see the sunset tomorrow; Tenth, the baseball nut, turf-head, the stupid cow, and even Hibari if he agrees to it!"

Tsuna's eyes widened and he immediately shook his head vigorously and waved his hands side to side. "T-That's too sudden! It'll be too inconvenient for everyone!"

"Nonsense! If the Tenth wishes for it, I'm sure everyone will cooperate," Gokudera smiled optimistically.

The brown-haired teen sighed, admitting defeat. "I guess…" He closed his eyes, leaning backwards with his arms as support. A flash of mismatched eyes and the sound of an unmistakable laughter filled his mind. He opened his eyes immediately. "What about Chrome?" he asked, replacing the nightmare in his mind with the female illusionist.

The enthusiasm started to fade from Gokudera's face to very poorly disguised disgust. "She can come, too, but I don't trust her or that guy's lapdogs," he grumbled. "I can never forgive that guy for what he put you through…"

Tsuna's large amber eyes glanced down at the math homework in front of him. "Y-Yeah, I know…" His memories of the encounter with _him_ re-entered his mind, running like a movie in his mind. His friends had fallen and were cut and bruised. One by one their bodies were taken over and forced to fight against their wills.

Tsuna shivered involuntarily at the remembrance of spilt blood and that cold motionless body.

"Anyways," Gokudera interrupted the replay, noticing his friend's discomfort, "I'll have everyone open up their schedules for tomorrow evening."

Amber eyes glanced up at the silver-haired teen but remained fixed on the tiny rhinestones scattered across dark velvet framed in the window behind him. "Yeah," Tsuna murmured absent-mindedly.

* * *

"So, where are we going to see the sunset, Gokudera?" Tsuna asked as the taller teen led him up a steep hill.

Gokudera glanced back over his shoulder, smiling like a child opening a wrapped gift. "You'll see, Tenth," he answered.

The two hiked the remainder of the trip quietly. Not because there was nothing to say, but because Tsuna was already out of breath and couldn't speak. When they had reached the top of the hill, Gokudera made a 180 and anticipated Tsuna's reaction.

Tsuna looked up at the party of people all lounging and chatting. He recognized the faces of Yamamoto, Ryohei, Kyoko, Haru, Bianchi, Shamal, I-pin, Lambo, Reborn, Colonello, Basil, Dino, Romario, Naito, and his mother. To his surprise, even Hibari was there.

"Everyone…" Tsuna felt the happiness inside him bubble. Each time a bubble popped, his happiness would grow just a bit more. He looked from face to face, smiling.

The gathered people exchanged looks with each other and Ryohei yelled, "One, two, three!"

All of them—with the exception of a certain skylark—roared: "Happy birthday, Tsuna!"

Tsuna wanted to cry from this unexpected turn of events. "Thanks, everyone," he smiled. The family went on to chatting and laughing with the sun still above the tree line that covered the horizon.

The brown-haired teen grabbed a cup of pink punch and let the icy cool liquid quench his thirst. He looked around at the familiar faces, brows only furrowing when he realized that someone was missing. "Hey, Gokudera," Tsuna turned to his silver-haired friend.

"Yes, Tenth?" he immediately responded, bounding back to him like a dog. "What is it?"

"Could Chrome not make it?" he whispered.

The happiness on Gokudera's face instantly soured. "Oh, her…those guys said they wouldn't go and that they wouldn't let Chrome leave either. Those two lapdogs are weird. They don't like her, but they still try to imprison her from doing something like celebrate the Tenth's eighteenth birthday."

Tsuna placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's fine, Gokudera. It's only a birthday celebration. It's not like she said she didn't want to come, right?" Tsuna smiled.

Sympathy replaced the bitterness once expressed in the stormy green eyes of Tsuna's friend. "You're right, Tenth. I'm sorry for acting so horrible on your birthday."

Tsuna shook his head, "Don't worry about it. You were just thinking about my safety, right? Let's just have fun until the sun sets."

* * *

Tsuna threw himself onto his bed, looking up at the ceiling. He felt exhausted after the party with his friends. Today, there was no mafia business, no training, no testing, just the happiness of being among friends. But, Tsuna couldn't help but feel his insides twist up. A small feeling of emptiness plagued his heart.

As he lay on the sheets, silence lulled him to sleep and dreams shipped him through his subconscious.

When he opened his eyes, the sky was a pure soothing blue. He sat up, bringing with him loose blades of grass attached to his white collared school shirt. Around him was a meadow of lush green and in front of him was a crystal lake. A soft breeze wafted the smell of sweet honeysuckle, pine, and fresh grass.

"How was your day today, Tsunayoshi?"

Tsuna turned around, fear and anticipation struggling for the dominant reaction. Behind him was a taller man and mismatched eyes. There was a smile on his face as he watched the younger teen's expression shift from one emotion to another.

"Why so shocked, Tsunayoshi?" he asked. "Is it because I'm here in your dreams?"

"Mukuro…" Tsuna whispered. The wind caught the name and gave a soft breeze that blew dark locks over a red eye. "Are you still—"

"In Vendiche?" he finished, looking up at the cloudless sky. "Yes, I am. Another attempted escape was foiled. I'm just sorry that this time it was today. I heard that the Storm Guardian invited everyone for a picnic to watch the sunset."

Tsuna nodded, still cautious of the older man. "Yeah."

"Well then, to make up for my absence there, let's have one here." His smile was genuine and he extended a hand towards the eighteen year-old.

Although Tsuna was weary of the criminal, he couldn't help but feel drawn to the man. Before he had even realized it or could stop himself, he had taken hold of the pale hand. The landscape morphed around them, the lake dried and trees sprouted from the basin and the meadow rose into a cliff that encompassed the forest. Behind the tall man, a dark tree sprung from the grassy earth and shaded the two.

"Is this location acceptable or would you prefer the beach?" he asked, smiling.

"Here's…fine," Tsuna answered, captivated by red and blue orbs.

Mukuro's smile widened. "Then…" He sat down and leaned against the tree, taking Tsuna down with him. The brown-haired teen sat between his long legs and was pulled back so that his head was against Mukuro's chest. Tsuna felt the blood rush through his cheeks.

"M-Mukuro!"

The man let out a cackle. His arms wrapped around Tsuna's waist. "I'm sorry, Tsunayoshi," he apologized, "But this is my nature. It's my goal to possess your body and destroy the mafia. However, I am unable to do this in a dream where we are only both fabrications of the mind. Allow me this one pleasure that could not happen in reality."

Tsuna gulped uncomfortably, but complied reluctantly. Inside, he felt sympathy for the older man. Somehow, he knew that it wasn't Mukuro's plan that wanted this, the warmth of another. "It's fine…" he mumbled.

It grew quiet, but very soft words of gratitude had reached Tsuna's ears. "Thank you, Tsunayoshi…" Mukuro's voice was very quiet and weary. He wasn't at full power, he was weak.

After those three words of gratitude, silence and the hushed rustling of leaves took over as the sun started to set and the sky started to dye orange.

As the sun dove deeper towards the horizon, Tsuna felt a weight press against the back of his head. "Mukuro?' he questioned breaking the silence. "What's wrong?"

No answer. Tsuna attempted to tilt his head backwards to see the illusionist, but the man stopped him, covering the younger's eyes with pale white hands before the amber could make contact with the mismatched orbs. "Don't look," he whispered as he pushed Tsuna's head back down. "Just watch the sunset." He released his hands and only let the boy see orange.

"When I was young, the mafia took my home and family and created the 'me' you know today. Growing up, I've never felt like I've truly fit in anywhere. Ken, Chikusa, they're only dogs to me. They follow me and I'm their home, but it's not the same way around."

Tsuna waited for Mukuro to say more, but when there was nothing, he opened his mouth to speak, "You do have a home. You may have hurt my friends in the past—and I still haven't forgiven you for that—but, you're family. My father entrusted you with protecting me and you saved Chrome's life."

Mukuro scoffed, "I don't need your pity, Tsunayoshi…"

"I'm not pitying you; it's the truth."

"In the broad spectrum of colors, the most notable ones are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. Indigo is indefinable, neither blue nor purple. This color is neither calm enough to be blue nor completely solitary to be purple. Indigo is the forgotten color that stands alone. It fights to be in the sky with the other colors for recognition, but is lost." The arms around Tsuna's waist tightened until they were white. "I…I don't want to be forgotten, but…"

Tsuna placed warm hands over the pale long fingers that covered his stomach. "You weren't forgotten. If you were, you wouldn't be here. Your loneliness is because you lock yourself away in the mist and don't let anyone penetrate it. But even if the mist is the only one so close to the earth, the sky still notices it and watches it. The sky still cares for the fog that caresses the earth so gently in its hazy blanket."

The tension in the older man's hands loosened, but still lingered.

Tsuna tilted his head backwards once more and looked up at Mukuro. The tips of dark strands tickled Tsuna's cheek. "You're not alone because you have no home. You're alone because you choose to be. It doesn't matter if you're locked away in a prison, you're still family. Your home is with everyone. You may have lost your parents, but we're still here for you. Ken, Chikusa, Chrome, everyone…we're still here for you."

Mukuro closed his eyes. When he opened them, pain was reflected in them. "If this is your plan to stop me from taking revenge, it was poorly played."

"This isn't a joke, Mukuro," Tsuna answered. "You really, truly are important to me. Although in the past, you may have tried to kill me, you haven't done anything. Even with Chrome so close to me, you could have her do your dirty work and you'd have possession over my body, but you didn't do anything. You may not want to admit it, but you've already stopped seeking revenge long ago. You're not important to me as a Guardian, but you're precious to me."

A small weak smile spread on Mukuro's face, "Even now, you're still a naïve, trusting child." Mukuro took one of Tsuna's hands in his and kissed his finger. "_Grazie_, Tsunayoshi."

Tsuna felt his cheeks redden again and he looked out at the sun that had dipped below most of the forest. "Look, right now in the sky indigo is the color that's next to orange. Even if indigo isn't taught to a child, it still has a place in the sky, whether it be at dusk or in a rainbow."

Mukuro smiled, resting his cheek against messy brown hair. "Still so pure even when tainted by dark's touch…"

Small twinkling lights appeared in the vast expanse and one by one started to fall in a shower of burning cold. The two sat in silence, watching the stars rain over the forest. The sticky sweet smell of honeysuckle, pine, and wet grass mesmerized Tsuna's senses and his eyelids hid bright amber.

* * *

"Wake up, Tsuna!"

An aching pain in his stomach forced the eighteen year-old to open his eyes. He furrowed his eyebrows at his still-baby tutor, "Reborn, what was that for?"

"Didn't you hear me? It's time to wake-up. Already in your last year of high school and you still can't wake up by yourself? If it goes on like this, I'll be your tutor for a lifetime. A real boss would have woken up before an assassin even came into the room."

Tsuna sighed. "Well, whatever," he muttered, walking towards the closet. He grabbed a fresh pair of boxers and a clean uniform from a hanger. Then, he changed into his clothes, tucking in his shirt into pants that were then tightened with a belt. He looked at his wrinkled shirt that lay on his bed; his mother wasn't going to be happy. As he was about to leave his room, he turned back, picking up his school bag. He glanced down at the shirt again and stopped. The white back was covered with green grass stains.

Tsuna dropped his bag and reached for the shirt. As he examined it closer, the smell of honeysuckles drifted from the white threads and on the collared shirt was a strand of dark hair. It was then, that he realized that there was a card in the pen pocket.

He took the card from its place and read the neatly scribbled words: "_Buon Compleanno_, Tsunayoshi."

* * *

_End Forgotten Color_

_I've come to realize that my stories aren't all that happy/are a bit on the depressing side. Don't you all agree? ^^;_

_Anyways, thanks for reading this!_

_Translation:_

_Grazie: Thank you_

_Buon Compleanno: Happy Birthday_

_**I'm not sure if it's like this in other places, but when I was in kindergarten, we learned that there's only six colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple. No indigo. I was remembering this as I was watching a cartoon that showed the "six" colors of the rainbow and I was: Hnn…interesting…_

_Reviews, please! _


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